Sir Joseph Paxton was a famous gardener and architect who was involved with Crystal Palace and the Great Exhibition. He was born in 1803 and died in 1865.

Strawberries were not introduced to Locks Heath and Titchfield Common until 1884 thus Sir Joseph Paxton could not have grown strawberries during his lifetime.

However The Sir Joseph Paxton became a well known type of strawberry grown in the area in the late 19th century. The locals and itinerant workers would work the fields from mid-May, and were known as “Joe Pickers” after the Sir Joseph Paxton strawberry, the best-known variety.